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Galley Tables

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An
encounter last month between a fishing vessel and a whale in Uyak Bay ended
badly for the whale. Apparently a 60-foot Fin whale feeding in the bay on the
morning of April 17 wound up hooking its baleen on the anchor line of the
48-foot boat and couldn't get loose.

Marine
Mammal specialist Kate Wynne with the University of Alaska Marine Advisory
Program said the whale drowned, but the incident could have ended badly for the
fishing boat and crew as well.

-- (Whale 123
sec"They were having
breakfast ... over the bow for a few seconds.")

As the
whale tried to unhook itself, the boat's crew also worked to separate the two.

-- (Whale 224 sec"They had no control over it ... it came to the surface.")

Wynne said
the boat went back to retrieve its anchor and cable, but were unable to at the
time because it was still wrapped too tightly around the whale and will have to
wait until it decomposes even more.

She said
the boat's skipper, who she declined to identify, did everything right in
handling the incident with the protected marine mammal:

-- (Whale 320 sec"He was just as much of a victim ... just wasn't
possible.")

Wynne, who
is one of the few people in Alaska certified to free stranded or entangled
whales, said this was a very unusual incident:

-- (Whale 422 sec"I've never heard of a whale ... network has heard of
this before.")

She said
the whale is near to shore, and will likely become a meal for area bears.